Oh yes bring it on! When’s the earliest we could see a revised MBP with the 3nm M2Pro??
Apple's main chip supplier TSMC will kick off mass production of 3nm chips this week, with Apple being the primary customer of the new process, which could first be used in upcoming M2 Pro chips expected to power updated MacBook Pro and Mac mini models.
According to the new report by DigiTimes, TSMC will start mass production of its next-generation 3nm chip process on Thursday, December 29, in line with reports from earlier in the year that said 3nm mass production would begin later in 2022. From the report:
Apple currently uses TSMC's 4nm process in the A16 Bionic chip in the iPhone 14 Pro series but could jump to 3nm as soon as early next year. A report in August claimed the upcoming M2 Pro chips would be the first to be based on the 3nm process. The M2 Pro chip is expected to debut first in updated 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros early next year and possibly updated Mac Studio and Mac mini models.
Later in 2023, according to another report, the third generation of Apple silicon, the M3 chip, and the A17 Bionic for the iPhone 15, will be based on TSMC's enhanced 3nm process, which has yet to be made available. According to the DigiTimes report today, citing industry sources, production of 3nm process chips is "unlikely to ramp up" until production of the enhanced version gets underway.
Article Link: 3nm Chips From Apple Supplier TSMC to Enter Mass Production This Week
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3nm Chips From Apple Supplier TSMC to Enter Mass Production This Week
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Likely fall of 2024, since the MacBook coming this spring will be based on existing node.
I feel like all the people here holding their breath for 3nm chips, expecting them to be some sort of revelation/performance breakthrough, are just setting themselves up to be disappointed.
What are you talking about? With all of the lightning cables I've accumulated over the years — I don't want usb-c))) Oh, and btw iPhone 15 won't be out for a while, so being a 14 Pro owner isn't really that bad at all. Oh, and people upgrade
My God, can I just get an updated MPB please? I feel like such an idiot for not getting the first redesign that came out OVER A YEAR AGO now...
I think you are right. I mean all the benchmark videos will blow you away, but when you start doing whatever you do with your computer, doubt you'll notice much of a difference. Like adding 32GB of ram, few people will really benefit from that. imho, of course..
I don't know, 70% more transistors on the same die area sounds pretty significant to me.
The fall of Apple
(The Fall of Apple Under Tim Apple)
I’m not against apple or favoring android/windows, but I can see a slight decline of Apple in the recent years: Lack of organization in the iPad lineup, Macs being way too expensive and don’t offer consumer priced displays (also M1 Ultra still can’t defeat Nvidia 3090), too much variation and lack of many important features that are already on android(fast charging, better heat management, etc) . The os are falling apart too (universal control failed to work yesterday, IOS starts to get buggy and slow, stage manager on iPad don’t make much sense…...
And now A16 is somehow behind snapdragon Gen2
I remembered just last year (2021) Apple is still ahead of many stuff and 2022 is a mess
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Because Intel is begging the German government for yet more subsidies to build a "cutting-edge" 10 nm fab, which will become operational between 2025 and 2027. With plans like these, Intel will likely never become competitive on performance per watt. Just like Microsoft they've engineered themselves into a desktop PC corner of the overall computing market and are already irrelevant.
In fairness those who buy the 14 know what they’re getting, and there’s always a better device coming along in the next generation.
Correct, the processors in these updated Macbook Pro have already been in production so they will not be on the 3nm process. Apple would never risk a product release on a brand new fab start, the 3nm will most likely be used for the A17 processor and then the M3 lineup.
Wrong, there is no way in the world the spring Mac's will be based upon the 3nm process that is just entering production. There is too much work that is needed to prove in the new production line to ever allow it to be used in such a high volume high profile product that will be offered in a few months - it takes 8+ weeks to complete a wafer run.
There could be a multitude of issues with chips on a new line; power consumption, data integrity, fab process issues, backside issues, etc. so no way would Apple place a bet that this will go without a hitch and even of it did go well at TSMC, Apple would need to conduct it's own quality and reliability studies on the new process line.
We’ll see if this is just more fiction once again than fact. Speculation about an upcoming meeting as beginning of commercial production, instead of something else.
Related
TSMC to hold 3nm process mass production launch ceremony on Dec. 29 - Focus Taiwan
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world's largest contract chipmaker, on Saturday announced it will hold a ceremony on Dec. 29 to celebrate the start of mass production using its 3 nanometer process and plans for further expansion of the technology in southern Taiwan.
It is unusual for TSMC to hold a ceremony to mark the beginning of commercial production of a new technology. Market analysts speculate that the company is holding the ceremony to publicize its intention to keep using Taiwan as a hub for research, development and production, despite its overseas investments.
Suspicion has risen that TSMC could relocate its production and R&D efforts to the United States after the chipmaker said at a first tool-in ceremony for a 12-inch wafer plant in the U.S. state of Arizona on Dec. 6 that it would increase its planned US$12 billion investment in Arizona to US$40 billion to build not only a 4-nanometer fab scheduled to begin production in 2024 but also a 3nm fab scheduled to begin operations in 2026.
Those concerns have intensified since TSMC sent a large group of engineers from Taiwan to support the Arizona plant, prompting many investors to fear that the chipmaker's base in Taiwan could lose its advantage by escalating competition on the global market through its move overseas
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Lets goooo
If M2 Pro upwards are indeed on 3nm, and they get the new GPU that was meant for A16 with ray tracing but used too much power for the iPhone, this would be a much bigger update than M2
If M2 Pro upwards are indeed on 3nm, and they get the new GPU that was meant for A16 with ray tracing but used too much power for the iPhone, this would be a much bigger update than M2
The first batch of 3nm will probably be reserved for the A17 and the AR/VR headset. Followed by the M3 in late 2023.
I really can’t see 3nm coming to the M2 Pro/ Max. No reliable sources have talked about it. This 3nm rumor was started by YouTubers. At best, the M2 Pro / Max may move up to 4nm like the A16.
I really can’t see 3nm coming to the M2 Pro/ Max. No reliable sources have talked about it. This 3nm rumor was started by YouTubers. At best, the M2 Pro / Max may move up to 4nm like the A16.
It depends on the product. For the iPhone 15 I’d prefer the efficiency. For the MacBook Pro probably the additional speed.
Ah the glory days of cheap Apple Mac computers back in 2000-never.
They were testing with preproduction chips.
From what I understand, the plan is to go from 2nm to -2nm. The chips are mostly the same, it's just that the -2nm is upside down. (Stay away from the antimatter variant.)
Remind me, can the 3090 be used in a laptop? Is it energy efficient? Didn't think so. Different products for different uses.
Not to mention the return of "Can you hear me now?" as I walk and drive through more dead spots today than 5 years ago. And I have bars...yet I can't connect to Siri.
5G is a solution looking for a problem - give me more reliable 4G.
Sorry...I guess I got off topic there.😜